Night Time Fear
by shoutitfromthehills
Summary: Jason finds Donna injured and alone in the forest, and decides to help.  Hunger Games AU where Jason Todd and Donna Troy were Reaped for the same Game.
1. Night Time Fear

**Title**: Night Time Fear

Word Count: ~450

**Fandom**: DC Comics/The Hunger Games

**Pairing:** Jason Todd, Donna Troy

**Description**: Jason finds Donna injured and alone in the forest, and decides to help.

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><p>Jason could see her fire from his perch in the tree. Obviously this girl wasn't the best at staying quiet and unseen. It was that girl from 4, Donna whatever. He remembered her from training; she seemed as good with a bow as with a blade. But apparently she didn't know how to stay alive. Jason pulled himself from tree to tree through the branches, trying to remain as silent as possible until he was in the tree right above her.<p>

She was sitting next to the fire, bow knocked and ready, but Jason could see her wounds from above. It wasn't hard to see what she was going to do.

"So, how many do you think you're gonna take out with you?" Jason called down to her before pressing himself into the tree to avoid the arrow that she had loosed. "All the Careers are still out there, and I doubt you'll be able to take out one, let alone more." He could see her unsteadily lean against the log she was sitting on and aim up into the trees.

"Yeah?" her voice was shaky. "So you're just gonna wait me out?"

"Maybe." Jason shimmied around to the back of the tree and then started to ease his way down. "Or I could just help you."

He heard her still below.

"Why?" The distrust in her voice was obvious. "I'm dead anyway."

"Obviously they don't teach you survival instincts in District 4. You're not going to die." Jason pulled out a pack of leaves and threw them down to her. "Put these on your wound, it'll help it close up."

He heard her bend down to pick it up, and chose that time to drop down out of the trees, scaring the girl so she fell backwards.

"I don't trust you." She was looking at the leaves suspiciously.

"Yeah, well, you don't have much of a choice. Come on, put out you're fire and I'll help you up into the trees."

At least the girl was a good tree climber, Jason could have never carried her up into the branches. They ended up about ¾ of the way up the tree, Jason in the branch above the girl.

"Just put the leaves on your worst wounds and go to sleep. By the time you wake up, they should be better." Jason settled himself in and tried not to think of the knob of bark that was digging into his lower back.

"So we just…wait?"

"Pretty much." Jason stretched out. "Just go to sleep, you'll feel better in the morning."

He could hear her sigh. "I'm Donna."

"Jason."

It was silent for a long while, but Jason had not fallen asleep yet when Donna spoke again, so softly it might have been a whisper.

"Thank you."


	2. Run Fast

**Title**: Run Fast

**Word Count**: ~500

**Fandom**: DC Comics/The Hunger Games

**Pairing:** Jason Todd, Donna Troy, Tim Drake

**Description**: Jason and Donna's alliance grows a little larger, but will Tim be able to fit into their partnership? Only one person can win the Hunger Games.

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><p>Donna and Jason were headed for higher ground when Donna grabbed him by the back of the shirt and dragged him to the ground.<p>

"What are-" Jason got out before Donna pressed her hand over his mouth and pulled out her bow with her other one.

"We have a shadow."

Setting her arrow, Donna moved away from Jason and aimed out into the vast green that surrounded them on all sides.

Jason tried to stay as silent as he could, sprawled out on the forest floor, his hand on the knife that was attached to his belt.

Jay could hear it now too, a crunching through the trees behind them. Whoever was following them was doing a piss-poor job of trying to stay silent. He looked at Donna, waiting for a sign, a signal to rush whoever was coming towards them. But she just motioned him to stay there, and then started off in a wide circle. It looked like she was gonna come up on the intruder from behind.

He heard a yell and a scuffle, and then Donna was back, dragging a boy with her. He was small and scrawny, and scrambled to his feet the once Donna let him go. Jason recognized him as one of the tributes from one of the outlying districts, and apparently a good runner to survive this long.

"Why are you following us, runt?" Jason grabbed him and slammed him against a tree.

"I-I-I," the kid stammered out.

Donna grabbed one of her arrows and pressed it against his throat. "You're gonna die anyway, so you can either answer the question now and live for a little longer or keep stammering and die now."

The kid swallowed and looked at Jason. "I wanted to join your alliance."

Jason's eyes narrowed. "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have an alliance. And if I did, why would I want a runt like you tagging along? You made enough noise following us to be heard by the entire forest."

The kid swallowed. "I'm tiny, I can run and hide, I can climb and keep watch, and I know how to forage. I can keep us alive."

"Keeping us alive seems a little counterproductive on your part kid, seeing as only one person can come out of this in the end." Donna let him go, sticking the arrow back in her quiver. "And this isn't an alliance. It's a partnership. So the minute you stop being useful, we're cutting you loose to go die in whatever way seems best to you."

"What do you have with you?" Jason eyed the backpack the kid had on. "Do you have a weapon? Or food?"

The kid shook his head. "No, all that was in the bag was rope, and a canteen."

Jason frowned. "Ok then. We got a few miles to walk and then we're setting down for the night."

The kid smiled and ran to catch up with them. "I'm Tim."

"Don't care."


	3. Almost There

**Title**: Almost There

**Word Count**: ~1000

**Fandom**: DC Comics/The Hunger Games

**Pairing:** Jason Todd, Donna Troy, Tim Drake

**Description**: Jason and Tim need to find somewhere safe to stay until Donna's leg heals. The Cornucopia is out of the question, and the caves near the river probably hold the best place to remain unseen.

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><p>It was still dark when Jason woke up. He took the time to check that they were still alone before shimmying down the tree and wandering off to do his business. There had been no sign of the Careers or anyone for the past few days and he was getting anxious. The deadline was always on the edge of his mind and what was necessary to avoid that outcome. Right now he was still in the outlast mind-frame, but the problem was that the tributes were dwindling. There was the Career alliance, one or two single tributes, and then his little group. Maybe if it was just him and Donna, they could take them all out, but the runt changes things. Tim wasn't violent, and he definitely doesn't have what it takes to win the Games, but Jason couldn't cut him loose. Tim wasn't just a tribute to Jason, he was all the kids in District 12 that relied on Jason to not starve. He was just a kid, and Jason wasn't about to surrender him to the forest. If the three of them survived until the end, he would reconsider, but for now, things wouldn't change.<p>

When Jason got back to their camp, Tim was up and packing, but Donna was still asleep.

"How is she?" Jason whispered. Tim just shook his head.

No medicine had ever been sent for her leg, and while Jason's make-shift treatments were helping, it wasn't enough, and it was easy to see.

Jason knelt down and moved Donna's hand away from where she had fallen asleep with it pressed down on the leaves that Jason had found. The skin was still red and puckered, but it was pussing now, which was a sign of infection. Jason closed his eyes and sighed, in a few days she wouldn't be able to keep up, and they really couldn't afford to stop anywhere for an extended amount of time.

"It's bad, isn't it?" He hadn't noticed that Donna was awake. "I know the signs, I can tell." She sighed and pushed herself up. "You and Tim should leave. Take the bow, and leave me the knife. That'll be enough for me to keep them off for awhile." She smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"Fuck that." Jason put his arm around her and hooked his hand under Donna's armpit to pull her up. "Come on, get up. I'll help you today, we can search for a cave to settle down in, and then I search out something that'll help you."

She smiled weakly and leaned back to rest against the tree. Jason went to pack up their bags with the little supplies they actually had before throwing them at Tim. "I need you to hold these today. I gotta take care of Donna today. We're going down to the river. We need a place to settle down for longer than a day until Donna is better."

Tim just nodded and added the two packs to his load.

Jason went back to where Donna was resting against the tree.

"Here. Wrap your arms around my neck. When I lean over, you can climb up my back. I'll carry you today." Donna closed her eyes and hooked her arms around Jason's neck, and Jason hitched her up.

"I need you to stay awake though, Donna. Tim has the packs and I have you, and that leaves no one with a weapon at the ready. I need you to stay awake and be my eyes, ok?"

Donna nodded against his back.

"Ok. Come on, Tim. I want to find a place to make camp before it's nighttime, and we're pretty far from the river as it is. Let's get moving."

The forest was quiet to them. All Jason could hear was Tim and Donna's breathing. Two hours into their hike, there was a shout, far in the distance, but no one bothered them on the way to the river. An hour later, and Jason had to take one of Tim's packs, the runt was breathing so hard. Another hour passed, and Donna was pulling at his hair.

"We should stop. You're gonna collapse."

"We should only have another few miles left. I can rest at the river."

"Not if that's where the Careers are. How are you going to survive if you can't even draw a bow?"

Jason sighed, but didn't slow down. "The Careers are at the Cornucopia, they're not gonna bother us at the river."

In the last hour, Jason's legs burned and his lungs ached, but he knew if he stopped they wouldn't make it to the river before night. And there was no way he was leaving them stranded in the night.

Once Jason's heard the running water, he couldn't keep from running. Stumbling, and almost tripping, he came crashing out of the forest. The river lay directly in front of them, and it was quiet. Jason knelt, letting Donna climb off of his back before walking slowly down to the riverbank, taking notice not to fall with how hard his legs were shaking. The water was cool and it was the night time cold that kept Jason from jumping in, clothes and all.

When he came back up to where they had collapsed, Tim and Donna were both laying down. Jason looked around, but could see no one, and for good reason. The river was exposed, and there were very few places to get cover.

"We can't stop here. We need to find someplace to stay." Jason grabbed the packs where Tim had dropped them. "Did you see any caves around here before you met up with us?"

Tim shook his head. "But there should definitely be some place to set up camp along the rocks."

Jason nodded. "Then we only have to walk a little farther."

It took them nearly an hour to find shelter, a little cave where the earth had collapsed inwards. The ground was still dirt, so while it was hard, it wasn't a tree branch in your back.

"Is anyone hungry?" Jason picked up the bow. "I can go out for food."

Donna was sprawled out on the ground, already half-asleep, but she grabbed Jason's arm when he started climbing out. "Stay. You can hunt in the morning."

So Jason stayed. Hunting could wait.


End file.
